(Image permission: Duncan Speirs)
LANCASHIRE, UK – Sheffield Steeldogs and Telford Tigers will contest the final of the NIHL North Cup after successfully navigating their last four ties over the weekend.
The Steeldogs needed a shoot-out to see off Hull Pirates in their semi-final, with Nathan Salem grabbing the decider to seal a 7-6 aggregate success.
Telford overcame a second leg scare against Solway Sharks to book their place in the final.
The Tigers went into the game with a 5-2 lead, but the Sharks refused to lie down and closed to within one goal on aggregate early in the final period.
However, Jason Silverthorn’s goal after 43 minutes settled the home side’s nerves and ensured they made it through to face Sheffield.
In Moralee D1, Ben Campbell and Sam Zajac both hit hat-tricks as Whitley Warriors triumphed 12-6 at home to Sutton Sting.
Kristers Bormanis (3) topped the scoring for Billingham Stars in their 4-1 home victory over Solihull Barons.
Nottingham Lions’ struggles continued at they fell 8-2 at Solihull – Daniel Harrison (2) and Matt Maurice (2) led the scoring for the home side.
Widnes Wild moved 12 points clear at the top of Laidler D2 with an 11-4 home victory over Deeside Dragons – Shaun Dippnall weighed in with a hat-trick.
Coventry Blaze NIHL had a mixed weekend, losing 7-0 at home to Bradford Bulldogs before bouncing back with a 6-2 win at Altrincham Aces.
PHN’s top two talking points
Two down, two to go for Hull
Hull may believe that their future lies higher up the UK ice hockey ladder, but they still remain incapable of winning the big games in the NIHL.
They were knocked out of the Autumn Cup by Sheffield in the semi-finals earlier this season, and their Yorkshire rivals repeated the trick in the NIHL North Cup.
The Pirates still have two trophies in their sights, but it remains to be seen whether they possess the necessary character needed when the chips are down.
Finnerty involvement a big coup for charity event
The announcement that Ryan Finnerty has agreed to be one of the bench coaches at the Rob Craig Memorial Event over the Easter weekend is a major coup for the organisers.
Last year’s event raised over £7,000 for mental health charity Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM) and it is hoped that the figure will be topped this time around.
Over 100 people will be volunteering their time to make the event a success and the involvement of the Manchester Storm head coach will certainly help to raise its profile.
WEEKEND RESULTS
Moralee D1
Billingham Stars 4-1 Solihull Barons
Solihull Barons 8-2 Nottingham Lions
Whitley Warriors 12-6 Sutton Sting
Laidler D2
Coventry Blaze NIHL 0-7 Bradford Bulldogs
Altrincham Aces 2-6 Coventry Blaze NIHL
Widnes Wild 11-4 Deeside Dragons
NIHL North Cup
Hull Pirates 4-3 Sheffield Steeldogs
Sheffield Steeldogs 4-2 Hull Pirates (SO) (agg 7-6)
Solway Sharks 2-5 Telford Tigers
Telford Tigers 3-4 Solway Sharks (agg 8-6)
THE WEEKEND AHEAD
Hull’s exit from the NIHL North Cup leaves them with just the league and play-offs to chase this season. They will be confident of beating Blackburn at home on Saturday, but could have their work cut out at Whitley the following day.
The Warriors have lost just once in their last eight games and pushed the Pirates close on their last visit to Hillheads. With the added bonus of a free Saturday ahead of the game, the North East outfit could cause Hull plenty of problems this weekend.
The two standout games in D2 are both on Sunday, with leaders Widnes visiting Sheffield Senators while Hull Jets host Telford Tigers 2.
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